Interpreting youth ministry through positive youth development : a case study of ACTS

Abstract

Positive Youth Development is a strengths-based view of adolescence that finds its origins in ecological systems theory. Central to its philosophy, the theory of Positive Youth Development suggests that “if young people have mutually beneficial relations with the people and institutions of their social world, they will be on the way to a hopeful future marked by positive contributions to self, family, community, and civil society” (Lerner, Almerigi, Theokas, Lerner, 2005). Research in Positive Youth Development has shown through different studies that structured voluntary activities contribute to holistic and healthy adolescent development. It achieves this through the development of initiative, secondary socialisation, and the language of agency. The concept of spark is also found to be activated though these activities, which allows adolescents to thrive. The 4-H study also shows that structured voluntary activities develop the five-plus-one C’s that also greatly contribute to adolescent development. ACTS stands for Announcing Christ to Schools and since 2001 has been the main outreach project targeting adolescents between 13 to 16 years in Malta and Gozo within Youth Fellowship. ACTS has distinguished itself locally by being the only full-time outreach evangelisation project in local secondary schools to date. The need for such a project was felt in view of the effects, both positive and negative, of the socio-economic evolution of Malta on our society, particularly our youth. The objectives of the ACTS project are threefold: 1. The ACTS school programme - supports Form 4 students in government, private, and Church schools sectors in their spiritual growth through dynamic and interactive sessions. 2. The ACTS Teens follow-up programme - provides follow-up for the 13 to 16 year old students who wish to find further support in their spiritual growth. There are currently 120 adolescents attending these weekly meetings on Fridays. 3. The ACTS Youth leaders recruitment and training programme - caters for the recruitment and training of older adolescents as volunteers to implement, together with the coordinators, both the student programme and the follow-up initiatives. I am currently a member and leader within the Cenacolo Community serving in this project. Over the years, I have noticed a healthy growth in a number of adolescents, as well as in myself and my peers, through participation in this group. After becoming aware of the theories put forward in Positive Youth Development, I intend to reveal to what extent the ACTS project is contributing to the holistic development of adolescents through the theoretical framework of Positive Youth Development.